


The Love Poison

by a_small_town_duck



Category: Tales of Vesperia
Genre: Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, First Kiss, Fluff and Angst, Hurt/Comfort, Love Confessions, Love Potion/Spell, M/M, Mutual Pining, Near Death Experiences, Out of Character, Poison, Poisoning, Pre-Relationship
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-12
Updated: 2020-03-25
Packaged: 2021-02-28 18:48:30
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 8,696
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23111977
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/a_small_town_duck/pseuds/a_small_town_duck
Summary: Yuri gets poisoned by a monster. The poison makes him overly emotional, affectionate, and it will possibly kill him by midnight if he and his friends can't make the antidote in time. But he might just reveal his affections for a certain knight before they can save him.
Relationships: Yuri Lowell/Flynn Scifo
Comments: 4
Kudos: 64





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I got a prompt to write a love potion fic and I hate the concept of love potions so I upped the stakes and made it poison bleh.   
> Also I realize this is probably a bad time to write fics about being sick but y'know...art reflects life.   
> Anyway, take my trash. Part two should be up soon.

This battle had been tough. What had started out as an easy quest for Brave Vesperia now proved to be rather difficult due to an unforeseen monster. Yuri swore under his breath as he dodged another spray of poison, only to narrowly avoid being bitten. All they needed was this stupid flower yet here they were fighting some horrible, poisonous enemy. Plus, they didn’t even have a magic lens to identify the damn thing.

“Yuri! Over here!” Flynn shouted, tossing a lemon gel over to him.

Yuri was quick to pop the gel into his mouth and feel a burst of energy. Flynn always seemed to be looking out for him. But now was not the time for Yuri to dwell on such thoughts or how the lemon gel was slightly warm from Flynn’s hand. Come on Yuri, focus.

The battle seemed to drag on for so long. At one point, Yuri just directed Flynn to run toward the flower so they could grab it and run. If he and the others could keep the monster busy, Flynn could get the flower undetected.

But the monster was smarter than Yuri anticipated. As soon as Flynn broke into a run toward the flower, the monster turned on him. Yuri was quick to block the monster’s attack and shielded Flynn just as the monster sprayed its poison.

The spray covered Yuri’s face, getting into his nose and mouth. His eyes burned as he fell toward the ground. He felt like he couldn’t breathe. All he could do was listen to the sickening sound of a blade ripping through a carapace, a whimper, and the sound of the monster running away.

Yuri coughed and sputtered as he tried to free his face from the burning liquid. Hands grabbed onto him and voices were saying something to him, but he couldn’t hear. He was so disoriented that he jumped feeling cloth touch his face.

“Karol, cut the flower, Repede, go find some water and wet this rag. Hurry!” Flynn’s voice was clear through ringing in his ears.

More sounds of footsteps. More sounds of Flynn talking to him. Yuri’s brain felt fuzzy now. He must have swallowed some of the poison. His mouth and throat were burning, and his eyes were running. He managed speech after a moment.

“Fuck!” Yuri rasped before spitting out poison from his mouth.

“Here, drink this.”

“Mmph…Flynn…”

“Please, it’s medicine…”

“Hurts!”

Yuri tried to object as a glass bottle bumped against his mouth and the herbal medicine flooded his senses. The burning in his mouth and throat turned to numbness as he ingested the medicine. He gasped, finally able to fill his lungs with air properly. Repede must have returned because he felt a cool cloth begin to wipe at his face.

He opened his eyes once Flynn finished wiping off the poison. Normally, he’d be alright after such care. Sure, Estelle’s healing artes would have made everything go faster but Yuri did not feel right at all. The fuzzy feeling in his brain persisted. His eyes focused directly on Flynn and he felt his body go light.

“Somethings wrong…” Yuri blurted out.

“What?” Flynn asked, his face somehow becoming…perfect.

“Something’s very wrong.”

“What?”

“You’re gorgeous…”

“Something’s wrong,” Flynn repeated to the group. “We have to get him back now.”

Flynn pulled Yuri to his feet and pulled Yuri to lean against his shoulder. For reasons unknown to Yuri, he wanted to nestle his face right into the crook of Flynn’s neck and…

“Walk faster, Flynn,” Yuri snapped.

“I’m practically dragging you, you’re the one who needs to walk faster.”

“I just got poisoned, asshole.”

“Want me to carry you instead?” Flynn said sarcastically, rolling his eyes.

“Yes,” Yuri blurted out, causing odd looks from the whole party. “I…uh… keep moving.”

The group managed to make their way back to town without wasting too much time. Yuri was still having odd thoughts about Flynn, his brain still hazy and dull. What kind of poison was affecting him and why did it make these thoughts swarm him?

The rest of the party was waiting in the inn, since they figured they didn’t need everyone for such a simple mission. Of course, seeing the state Yuri was in, they were quick to their feet.

Estelle’s healing artes immediately began to flood Yuri. He was grateful for the magic that healed the remaining damage the poison did to his face. Flynn gently lowered Yuri to a chair, letting Estelle work.

“What happened to you, Yuri?” Estelle asked in between spells.

“He protected me from the monster’s poison,” Flynn responded quietly.

“Because I messed up. Shouldn’t have told you to get that stupid flower…”

“Monster?” Judith asked, raising an eyebrow. “Is that why you took so long?”

“Yeah…damn thing had a poison breath…messed me up…”

“Well…your face isn’t red anymore…are you still in pain?” Estelle pulled back.

“No…but my head feels funny…”

“Wait! We have the flower! We can go ask the lady at the apothecary if she knows what’s going on with Yuri!”

“Good idea, Karol,” Flynn said before turning to Yuri. “Can you walk?”

“Um, yeah…” Yuri looked up at Flynn, his heart quickening as he stared. He was starting to feel dreamy.

Flynn noticed the way Yuri stared at him before offering him his arm.

“You should probably still lean on me…you’re still acting weird.”

Yuri grabbed onto his arm and pulled himself to his feet. He found himself awfully close to Flynn and blushed deeply. Being so close to Flynn made his whole body feel light, like he would melt at any second… He really needed to get this cured…

They made their way through the town before arriving at the apothecary. The woman opened the door and smiled.

“Oh! You’re back! Did you get the flower?”

“We did, Miss Hyacinth, but there was a monster and it poisoned our friend. None of our poison bottles worked. Or Estelle’s healing artes. Can you help him?” Karol asked, as he pulled out the flower for her.

“A monster? Do you know what it was?”

“No. We didn’t have any magic lens on us. It looked like a spider almost… with flowers all on it…”

“Oh! Bring your friend inside! This could be extremely dangerous. Come in!”

The woman led them inside the shop and to a backroom. Flynn continued to let Yuri hold onto him before he was directed to deposit Yuri onto a chair. Yuri felt cold at the lack of Flynn’s touch and felt an overwhelming urge to grab back onto Flynn. He resisted it, but it was getting difficult.

“I’m surprised you’ve managed to keep your composure, young man.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Yuri questioned, now feeling a little indignant.

“I’ll explain. Just let me look at you…” She got very close to Yuri, looking at his eyes and his face.

“What are you doing?”

“Did you get sprayed in the face?”

“Yeah but—”

“And did you swallow any?”

“Some. And it got in my eyes and nose.”

“When you cleared your eyes, who did you look at…”

“What’s the point of these questions?” Yuri was beginning to get angry.

“I’m helping you. Who did you look at?”

“Flynn but—”

“You, knight. Grab his hand for me?”

Yuri was about to protest but the second Flynn held his hand, his anger dissipated and he visibly relaxed.

“Just as I thought. You’ve been love poisoned.”

“Love poisoned?”

“Yes. The monster you fought is quite dangerous since its poison affects its target’s brain. What should have happened was that once you were sprayed by the monster, you would look at it and become subdued, almost infatuated. But because you looked at your friend…well I’m sure you get the picture. It’s a horrid poison that works almost like a love potion. We call it love poison.”

“So, Yuri’s now in love with Flynn?” Karol looked puzzled, seeing the way that the rest of the group looked at each other.

Raven opened his mouth to say something before Rita clamped a hand over his mouth, lest he cause more damage than what had already been done. Flynn’s grip tightened slightly hearing the comment, causing a whimper to escape Yuri’s lips.

“What was that?!” Rita exclaimed, voicing everyone’s surprise at the sound Yuri just made.

“One of the symptoms of love poison. Mr. Yuri here will be in a heightened emotional state. Your knight friend simply grabbed him a little too tightly. All of you will want to be careful while he’s like this. His emotions will only increase.”

“How do we fix him?” Flynn asked, his voice barely above a hoarse whisper.

“Well…the last of my medicines were bought out by the knights visiting town, so you may want to ask them to buy back the potion we need. Or I could make another antidote, but I need more ingredients, and we may not have time.”

“What do you mean?”

“Your friend could…well…he could die if not treated soon. That’s why we call it a poison. I’d give him until midnight if he’s not treated soon.”

And every member of Brave Vesperia fell gravely quiet. Flynn’s grip on Yuri’s hand became almost painful, causing a few tears to fall from Yuri’s eyes. This caused Flynn to grow startled and let go, leaving Yuri with that cold empty feeling once more. He didn’t like this feeling. He didn’t want to die. And he certainly wanted everyone to stop looking at him like was already gone.

“Stop looking at me! Stop!” Yuri growled, growing even more frustrated at the situation. “I will not die like this! And I’m not dead yet!”

“Yuri’s right. We have two options, so we better start now,” Judith said, taking control of the situation. “We have enough people for two teams. Raven, Karol, Rita, and Patty, we should go gather the ingredients for the antidote. Flynn, Estelle, and Repede should go to the knight’s garrison and see about buying back the antidotes.”

The group unanimously agreed for once. The life of their friend was at stake and they were determined to save him, no matter what it took. Judith’s group left immediately, while the others gathered more information from Miss Hyacinth.

This plan seemed perfect, save for the fact that Yuri was left out of it. It looked like Flynn was planning on leaving him at the apothecary. There was no way he was going to sit around and wait for death. When Flynn, Estelle, and Repede were about to leave, Yuri tried to go with them.

“You should stay here. So, you don’t get hurt anymore,” Flynn commanded, though there was little force behind his words.

“No. I’m going with you.”

“No Yuri! You’re dying!”

“And that’s why I get to choose whether or not I’ll go!”

“You’re acting foolish!”

“Because I’m poisoned! And you’re the only thing keeping me sane because of some stupid love effect or whatever and I’m…”

Yuri’s face crumpled. He was feeling too many things all at once. What little hold he had over his composure was gone. Any sense of his previous character was lost to the love poison, leaving an emotional mess. He was dying. He was in love with Flynn. And everything was too much.

“I’m…” he hiccupped as tears fell down his face. “I’m—”

Flynn rushed forward and was quick to take Yuri’s hand. The warmth of Flynn’s hand had an instantaneous calming effect. Yuri’s tears slowed to a stop and he took a deep breath.

“Fine. You don’t deserve to be alone like this and it’s my fault you’re poisoned. Let’s just go. Quickly.”

So, Flynn and Yuri departed for the knights’ quarters in town with Estelle and Repede in tow. Flynn led the way, keeping a firm hold on Yuri’s hand. Despite no one really noticing the rather romantic-looking gesture, Flynn wore a bright pink blush on his cheeks. Yuri figured that Flynn must have been embarrassed, and he understood why, but it stung a bit.

His affections for Flynn were not simply limited to the love poison. There was something else inside Yuri. A closeness he shared with no one else. A comfort no one else offered him. A non-verbal understanding that he could achieve with only Flynn. He guessed this was what being in love felt like. It was so annoying and painful and inconvenient that he dare not reveal this to Flynn while in control of his emotions. And he could not deny the fear that he might reveal too much under the love poison.

They began to get a little more attention when they neared the Knight’s garrison. After all, who didn’t know the beloved Flynn Scifo and the infamous Yuri Lowell? Of course, they were confused as to why Yuri and Flynn were holding hands. Flynn could have sworn he saw a knight pass a couple gald to his friend, but he ignored it. They had pressing matters.

Flynn attempted to make himself as imposing as possible as they made their way through the garrison. It was a little difficult to make himself exude authority when he was holding hands with an increasingly clingy Yuri. He turned to speak to Estelle, but he noticed she was running after a couple of knights being carried to the infirmary. It was just Flynn and Yuri…and Repede.

Flynn sighed and located a page boy. He asked him where the captain of the garrison’s office was and followed the boy’s directions. Flynn led Yuri down the hallway, trying to keep a swift pace. But Yuri kept trying to press as close to him as possible. It kept causing Flynn to trip over himself. Eventually he turned toward Yuri sharply.

“Stop! Ugh! I can’t handle you like this!” Flynn snapped.

He immediately regretted yelling at Yuri, as Yuri in his emotional state started to get upset. Yuri let go of Flynn’s hand to cover his face in his hands. Flynn felt like shit almost immediately upon seeing his reaction. It hurt to see Yuri in any kind of distress. He reached to touch Yuri’s shoulder, but the man just jerked away from him. 

“Don’t touch me!”

“Yuri! I’m sorry! I—” Flynn was cut off when he realized they were causing a scene.

The knights all stared in disbelief seeing the emotional Yuri before turning to Flynn for a variety of reasons. For some, it was confusion. And for others, it was almost like silent judgement. It made Flynn feel worse.

“Yuri, please…”

But Yuri was having none of it. He turned on his heel and ran down the garrison hallway. Flynn swore under his breath.

“Repede, go catch him!”

The dog barked in response and dashed after Yuri, Flynn following closely. Yuri managed to outrun Repede for a while before the dog dashed into the back of Yuri’s legs and he crashed to the floor. He was a mess of sobs. If Flynn were a touch cruel, he might have called the scene rather pathetic.

Flynn gently coaxed Yuri to a sitting position. The sight of Yuri in tears was a rare one that he hadn’t seen since they were young children. Even when they were children, Yuri never allowed his eyes to even water. So, a nearly hysterical Yuri was kind of heartbreaking.

“Yuri…Yuri, I’m sorry…I know you can’t control yourself…”

“This is embarrassing! I can’t stop!” Yuri wailed. Oh dear.

“It’s okay…Here.”

He wrapped the edge of his cape around his hand and delicately wiped up Yuri’s face, so that it was clean of tears. Flynn was able to get a good look at Yuri’s face scrunched up in such a flurry of emotions. It was almost fascinating to see, since Yuri’s composure never so much as wavered in their day-to-day. He felt guilty for staring so he reached for Yuri’s hands to check for scrapes, but his eyes couldn’t tear themselves away from the details of Yuri’s face.

His long eyelashes were wet from the tears and almost drooped under the weight. His hair was plastered to his damp cheeks. Flynn never noticed how chapped Yuri’s lips were until now, nor had he ever seen the gentle dusting of freckles under those tired eyes. He was beginning to wonder if he had been poisoned too.

A voice from behind them roused Flynn from his staring. The captain of the garrison stood above them, looking down at the two of them with a raised eyebrow. Flynn’s face flushed red and he hurried to his feet, helping Yuri up in the process. He let Yuri latch back onto his arm.

“I was told that Flynn Scifo was looking for me. I’m guessing this is what you wanted to talk to me about.”

“Um…Yes…Yes, Captain. You see my friend here was—”

“Poisoned?”

“Yes…How did you—”

“Our soldiers got attacked by that beast. We bought some antidote from the apothecary in town. You should be able to find some in the infirmary, but I’m not sure how much we have left.”

“Ah! Thank you, Captain. Let’s go, Yuri!”

“Make sure your ‘friend’ gets all healed up!” The captain called after them.

Flynn’s face turned a dark shade of red as he led Yuri down to the infirmary. Yuri was oddly quiet as he walked with Flynn. His outburst earlier was uncharacteristic, but this Yuri seemed far to silent for his liking.

He looked back at Yuri and saw how miserable he looked. His eyes were still so sad, and his face was still red from what he could only assume was embarrassment. Flynn really needed to stop worrying his own embarrassment. He was fully in control of his emotions. He was not subject to the whims of the poison. He was not the one who was dying.

They made it to the infirmary where Estelle was talking to the doctor there. She turned, hearing Flynn and Yuri approach. Her face drooped slightly when she looked at them and that told Flynn everything they needed to hear. The knights were out of antidote and Yuri would be out of time soon.

Flynn and Estelle talked to the doctor, seeing if there was anything left of the antidote. Anything to help their friend. A weight descended on Flynn’s shoulders, nearly knocking him off balance. Yuri was dangling off him, his face burying into his neck. At first, Flynn thought Yuri was just being affectionate, but Yuri felt more like deadweight than actively leaning on Flynn.

He was lucky he caught Yuri, who fell limply toward the floor. The poison must have been affecting Yuri more strongly now. He hoisted Yuri back up, supporting his weight with his shoulder and an arm around the waist for more stability.

The doctor handed them a bottle with nothing but a drop of antidote. It would not fix the problem, but they forced Yuri to drink anyway. He cringed at the taste but at least he seemed the slightest bit alert.

They had to get Yuri back to the apothecary, with the hopes that their friends had managed to get the necessary ingredients for the antidote. The journey back was slow, and it was almost sunset. They were running out of time and needed to hurry, but Yuri was nothing but deadweight to them.

“…leave me…faster…” Yuri mumbled as they walked, his words slurring like a drunkard’s.

“I am not leaving you, dumbass…”

Yuri muttered something about being nicer to the dying man before his eyes fluttered shut and he tried to collapse on the pavement. Flynn swore under his breath before catching Yuri once more. He almost missed the overly affectionate Yuri from before. At least that Yuri was coherent.

Estelle quickly used another healing arte on Yuri as Flynn caught him. That at least kept Yuri awake, though dazed. Flynn could see the way Yuri had trouble focusing on anything in front of him. His eyes drooped so they looked almost closed, but Flynn could see a sliver of Yuri’s dark eyes. They looked paler than usual, if that was possible. Perhaps the poison was affecting him more.

In any case, Flynn knew they needed to move faster before Yuri met his end here in the streets. He hoped to anyone that the others got the potion they needed. He couldn’t let Yuri die; he couldn’t lose him again. But they weren’t moving fast enough.

Flynn knocked Yuri’s legs out from under him before scooping Yuri up. It could have been bridal style had Yuri not been so out of it. Yuri at least made loud whines of protest when Flynn carried him, which at least meant he was still there with them.

“I’m sorry. But we need to move.”

“Flynn…” Yuri whined, his voice barely above a whisper.

“We’ll be there soon…”

“I need to tell you something…before I—”

“You are not dying!”

Flynn broke into a run, racing against the sun and moon at this point. He needed to get Yuri back to the apothecary. They needed to try whatever they could. Just as the sun was about to set, Flynn burst into the apothecary.

Hyacinth called them to the back room once more, where she’d set up a cot for Yuri to lay on. Flynn delicately placed him on the cot, keeping ahold of one of his hands. The steady grip was enough to let Flynn know that Yuri was still alive, at least for now.

“Have they come back yet?” Estelle asked the woman.

She shook her head. It was getting late and Yuri only had hours left. Estelle took off to stand outside and pace nervously, waiting for the rest of Brave Vesperia to arrive with the herbs needed for the antidote.

That left Flynn and Repede with Yuri. Yuri’s face was coated with sweat, causing his hair to stick to him. For the most part, he was motionless, only the rising and falling of his chest suggesting that he was still alive.

Flynn moved his hair out of his face gently, so Yuri would not be uncomfortable. However, Yuri’s eyes flickered open momentarily to watch Flynn. They pierced right into Flynn, scrutinizing him intensely before hiding behind his eyelids once more. Flynn sighed softly before coaxing Yuri up.

“Hmm?”

“You’re drenched in sweat. Let me get your tunic off. You’ll be more comfortable that way.”

“Heh…trying to get me out of my clothes?”

“Ugh…glad your wit is back…”

“Might as well be myself before I die. At least the poison can offer me some dignity…”

“Shut up…”

Yuri was soon free of his tunic and laid back against the cot. He opened his eyes again and looked up at Flynn once more with that intense gaze. Flynn felt uncomfortable under that stare, especially because Yuri was looking at him with such clarity that he had lacked before. Perhaps Yuri was right about the poison letting him have some moments of dignity.

“Why are you looking at me like that?”

“I don’t like the way you look.”

“Gee thanks,” Flynn snorted.

“I don’t want to die and have my last image of you be…so grim…”

“You’re…You’re…” Flynn struggled to find the words.

Yuri was dying. Flynn could not deny it. The sun had set outside, and it was only a matter of time before the poison would completely overtake Yuri’s body. They had until midnight but that was only an estimation. Yuri could die before then, before they even finished the potion. Would the group make it back in time? Even if they did, would the potion be ready?

Flynn stared at Yuri, pondering every thought, every worry, all while Yuri stared at him with those eyes. He was staring at a dead man.

“Hey…Hey Flynn…No…don’t cry…”

But Flynn couldn’t stop the tears from dripping off his cheeks. His eyes closed as he leaned over Yuri, his shoulders shaking with each gentle hiccup that escaped his lips.

“Flynn…No…”

Hands cupped Flynn’s cheeks, forcing Flynn to open his eyes and look down at Yuri. Their faces were so close, and Yuri looked genuinely concerned for his friend. His thumbs grazed Flynn’s cheeks, wiping up the tears that were falling.

“I don’t want you to die…”

“Aww, you care about me.”

“Yeah! I fucking care for you, Yuri! You’re my best friend…I already lost you once at Zaude…I don’t want to lose you again…please…”

Flynn’s sobs were renewed. He felt like he had lost his father all over again, except this time he was losing his best friend. He loved Yuri and now he was being so unfairly ripped from him.

He felt the hands that were on his face pull him down to the cot before arms wrapped around him in a tight embrace. Yuri was shaking too, from what Flynn could feel, and the hands that rest on his back tangled themselves in his cape and hair. They stay tangled in each other for a while.

When they pulled apart, Yuri grabbed Flynn’s cape to wipe his face and Flynn’s. Flynn whined softly when Yuri blew his nose on one of the corners. Yuri dodged his hand that went to flick his forehead before giving a weak laugh.

Flynn stripped his armor off and made a neat pile next to him. The only thing he was left in was his tunic and black underclothes. Yuri pulled him to the cot again and wrapped his arms around him again. Flynn didn’t object. He wanted Yuri to be happy while he was still…

Flynn shot up hearing the voices of Brave Vesperia enter the apothecary. They ran into the back room with Miss Hyacinth, who started to work on the antidote. Yuri propped himself up to look at what was going on.

“You went through all this trouble just for me?”

“Of course, we did, you idiot. That stupid spider tried to kill you, so we killed it back.” Rita nearly spat, yet she was the first to join Flynn on the cot.

“More like it attacked us while we were grabbing the herbs. But yes, we killed it…” Judith knelt next to them. “Perhaps it was a little indulgent on our part…couldn’t forgive a creature for poisoning our friend…”

The rest of Yuri’s friends surrounded him, growing rather misty eyed at the thought of their friend possibly dying on them. Yuri seemed to be holding himself together well. He must have done enough crying for one lifetime. However, he was allowing himself to be more open with his friends, giving them little trinkets as they spoke, telling them things he needed to get off his chest. He even kissed Patty’s hand as a farewell, causing the girl to wail with grief.

It felt like hours were passing as they wait for the potion to be ready, and it was not looking great. Yuri was growing weaker every minute. Whatever alertness he had before was slowly slipping. Brave Vesperia had taken to laying around him on the cot, growing weary from their emotional day.

Flynn stay up, sitting next to Yuri and keeping his head propped up. Yuri looked at him with hazy eyes, which were sunken in from how tired he was becoming.

“Flynn, I gotta…tell you…”

“Save your strength, please…”

“No…it’s too important…”

“Yuri…”

“No. Look…The poison…the poison didn’t make me fall in love with you. It just made my emotions weird around you…but I loved you before all of this. I’ve loved you since we were kids…”

Yuri suddenly started to cough, wheezing as he tried to regain his breath. Flynn kept ahold of him, trying to keep him steady. He could hardly process what Yuri was telling him. Yuri loved him? And he was telling him now?

“Flynn…T-Take me outside…I wanna die where I can see the sky.”

Flynn was quick to oblige, carefully lifting Yuri up into his arms. The rest of Brave Vesperia followed, bringing Yuri to the gardens. Flynn laid him down on the cool ground before looking up at the night sky. The star of Brave Vesperia shone brightly above them, as if watching over the guild that shared its name.

Yuri’s eyes seemed to fixate on the star for a moment before a grin covered his face and he looked over at Flynn.

“Smile for me…please…”

“You’re such an idiot…” Flynn’s lips curled into a soft smile before Yuri’s eyes fluttered shut.

“See you…”

“I love you too…” Flynn whispered as he could feel Yuri’s body begin to fall limp.

Everything was still. Flynn lowered his head, tears falling down his cheeks onto the lifeless body in his arms. He leaned down and pressed his lips to Yuri’s. He pulled away, crushed by the motionless form of his friend. Yuri was gone.

And then Miss Hyacinth burst into the garden, a vial in her hand. She dumped the liquid down Yuri’s throat. For a moment, Yuri was still, but then he rolled over in a coughing fit. He coughed and retched before he threw up into the flowers.

“Yes! I got him just in time!”

“What?” Flynn looked at her, bewildered at what just happened. “But he was gone! I thought we ran out of time!”

“Well apparently we didn’t. Look, he’s moving around just fine. Although it’s strange, usually victims of the spider’s bite don’t recover from the loopy feeling. Nor should he have been moving around as much as he was, since the poison usually attacks the muscles as well…What color was the spider you fought?”

“Green?” Flynn said, staring at the retching Yuri in disbelief.

“Well that’s it! You all had me worried for nothing. Green spiders are just the babies. Their poison can’t kill yet. You have to really watch out for the pure white ones. Your friend would have just been sick for a while. Luckily, the antidote seems to have worked on him.”

“You mean I wasn’t in any danger of dying this whole fucking time?” Yuri croaked.

“No. Well…Now I know I should ask more questions…at least you’re alive. You should probably stay here, for a few days so I can make sure you heal properly. I have spare rooms upstairs for all of you.”

“I poured my heart out to all of them and I wasn’t even going to die? Are you kidding me?” Yuri was growing more agitated, no longer throwing up. He had most of his old energy back.

Flynn hoisted Yuri up into his arms rather unceremoniously, despite the protests.

“I’ll bring Yuri inside.”

“Hey! I’m not done!” Yuri whined.

“Yes, you are,” Flynn’s voice was strained as he carried Yuri back inside, ignoring the looks of tired relief on their friends’ faces.

Flynn deposited Yuri on the cot, feeling too many things at once. Yuri wasn’t in any danger this whole time. Yet, the emotions they all felt were so real and so raw, that he felt rather awkward. He was relieved and happy and angry all at the same time.

He turned to say something to Yuri, but he was already asleep, far too tired from the day’s events. Flynn was tired too. Emotionally and physically. He needed to talk to Yuri about everything they said.

Flynn watched Yuri sleep for hours, making sure Yuri wouldn’t leave them in his sleep. Eventually, Flynn passed out as well, his head resting against Yuri’s chest.

They had too much to talk about, but that could wait. They needed rest.


	2. Chapter 2

Yuri took several days to recover from the poison. But he was healing nicely, according to the apothecary. Brave Vesperia decided to take to the town and do some small jobs for people while they waited for Yuri to regain his strength. Karol got stuck cleaning a warehouse. Estelle and Rita went shopping, once Estelle stopped fussing over Yuri. And nobody really knew where Patty wandered off to.

That just left Flynn and Repede alone with Yuri. Well, Raven was there too, but he mostly spent his time napping in the gardens. Flynn watched over Yuri, mostly from a distance. The medicine the apothecary gave him made Yuri particularly lethargic, so whatever conversation they needed to have would have to wait until Yuri was healed.

Flynn decided he would do some chores for Miss Hyacinth, finding himself going stir-crazy from sitting around for so long. The wait for Yuri to properly wake up was driving him near insane. He could go out to the town and help Judith and Karol with their jobs, but Flynn couldn’t bear to leave Yuri alone. After everything they revealed to each other, he couldn’t just leave him.

His thoughts were frazzled. He’d kissed Yuri. Yuri told him that he loved him. He’d confessed to Yuri. Everything was happening too fast and yet far too slow. The wait for answers, for closure, for anything was driving him crazy.

Would they date? Would dating like this even work? Flynn was the commandant and Yuri was a guild member. Actually, he was guild member and a criminal, if he was being a little more accurate. Would their childhood relationship help them or hurt them? Flynn had no answers, no one to talk to about any of this.

Nor did he really want to talk to anyone about this. Yuri’s friends did not hear all their conversations. But they did see Flynn tenderly kiss Yuri when they thought their friend had finally succumbed to the poison. Estelle was trying to be helpful, but she was far too naïve when it came to romance. She could only cite novels. Rita didn’t care. Judith frightened him. Captain Schwann…Raven usually wasn’t awake when Flynn thought to speak to him. Patty only glared at him. And Repede was a dog. He had no one to talk to except himself.

So, he just busied himself with chores. That way he wouldn’t be forced to listen to his own thoughts. On this day, he found himself sweeping the various rooms of the apothecary, the last room being Yuri’s new room. They had moved him somewhere more comfortable, since they did not need to monitor him so closely. Flynn had carried him up here, and he had to steel himself to not think of how warm Yuri’s body was against his. He often found himself blushing whenever he was thinking about it.

Stupid brain. He went about sweeping and dusting the room, ignoring the man laying in the bed. However, he couldn’t help his eyes, and they wandered to the sleeping form of Yuri. Except…he wasn’t asleep. Dark eyes stared at him under heavy eyelids, seemingly scrutinizing every inch of Flynn, yet they also held a sort of glassy quality too, like Yuri also could not quite focus on anything.

Flynn wondered if it was the medicine making his eyes so unfocused, or if it was just that Yuri only now woke up and his eyes simply hadn’t adjusted yet. It took everything in Flynn’s power not to stare at the man any longer. He didn’t want to be weird. Things were weird enough already.

“Mornin’,” Yuri mumbled, breaking Flynn out of his thoughts.

“Good afternoon…” Flynn couldn’t help but smile slightly seeing Yuri’s eyes widen.

“It’s that late?”

“Uh huh…I don’t know why you’re worried. You’ve slept for three days.”

“Ugh. Damn. We gotta get going.”

Yuri started to prop himself up, flinging the blankets off his body. Flynn rushed over to Yuri to try and force him back to the bed.

“Hey! You shouldn’t be moving around! You’re still recovering!”

“No! I feel fine!”

Flynn backed off slightly and let Yuri stand. However, Yuri’s knees buckled under him and he nearly fell to the floor. Flynn caught him before Yuri could fall completely and helped him back into bed. He let out an exasperated sigh. At least Yuri was back to normal. He looked at the man grumbling in bed.

“Why aren’t my legs working? I feel so weak!” Yuri complained, crossing his arms and glaring up at Flynn.

“You’ve been bedridden for three days. Plus, you were literally poisoned. It’s a miracle you’re even alive.”

“Well it’s stupid. I want to get on the road and out of this bed.”

“Ugh…glad to see you’re back to normal.”

“Huh? Normal? What do you mean? How weird was I acting?”

“You…You don’t remember what happened?” Flynn’s eyebrows raised in surprise while his heart fell in his chest.

“Uhh…Somewhat? My mind feels so hazy. I know I was a nuisance. And I cried a bunch and then I passed out…and then I got sick after Hyacinth gave me that gross medicine. Why? What else did I do?”

Yuri didn’t remember the confessions. He…He didn’t remember the kiss. Flynn didn’t know whether to feel upset about this development, or some twisted form of relief. He wouldn’t have to confront Yuri about their feelings if Yuri didn’t remember. But their words were so important, and Flynn had all these feelings and Yuri told him that he loved him and—

“Flynn? You okay there, buddy?”

“Huh? Oh yeah. I’m…fine. I’ll…uh…I’ll go get Miss Hyacinth to make sure you’re okay…Do you need anything?”

“Um, water. You’re acting weird.”

“Nope. No, I’m not. I’ll…be right back…”

Flynn hurried out of the room before he could say anything else to make Yuri suspicious. How was he going to explain everything to Yuri who didn’t know that Flynn was in love with him and that Yuri revealed that he loved him back? His thoughts were running wild as walked down the stairs to meet with the apothecary.

“Are you done needing chores to do while your friend recovers?” Miss Hyacinth asked, looking up at Flynn.

“Actually, he’s awake right now. He seems better, other than the fact that he still feels very weak…”

“Oh! Well I’ll go check on him. Did he need anything else?”

“Just…Just a glass of water. Do you have any more chores you need done? I don’t mind doing them…”

“There’s some wood out back that I need chopped for my fireplace. I shouldn’t need too much, but it would be a big help.”

“Alright. I’ll go do that then…”

Flynn walked out into the back gardens before locating the firewood that needed chopping. He set to work, letting the repetitive motion drown out his thoughts. He was getting all warm and sweaty from chopping the wood, but he worked through it. He didn’t want to think about anything until he absolutely had to.

But just how would he even approach Yuri with this? He wasn’t any good with feelings. He may have been more inclined to romance than his friend, but that didn’t mean he was any good at romance. Nor had he encountered a situation quite like this one. He let out a groan of frustration and released an arte, nearly splintering the wood.

“Hey! What’d that log ever do to you?” A voice piped up behind him.

“Ah! Captain Schwann. I mean Captain Raven…uh no…Raven—”

“Easy there, kid. No need to get worked up over the Great Raven. You really need to learn to relax.”

Raven smirked as he leaned back against the tree he was napping under. He had a book open on his chest that he must have fallen asleep to. Flynn figured he’d woken Raven up with all the noise he was making.

“I…I didn’t realize you were there. I’m sorry for waking you up from your nap.” Flynn bowed his head, somewhat ashamed.

“No need to apologize. Can’t help but notice you seem awfully tense. Trouble with yer boyfriend?”

“He’s not—! Uh…I mean…um…yeah, you could say that…”

“Well you could always tell me about it. I may be old but that doesn’t mean I don’t know my way around relationships.”

“It’s pretty complicated.”

“Oh, how complicated could it be? It’s not like he doesn’t remember everything that you said to each other, right?”

“Um…”

“Yer kidding.”

“He doesn’t seem to remember much from that day. Only his mood swings really.”

“I take it he didn’t mention anything about you kissing him.”

“I feel like an idiot for doing that…our first kiss…and probably our only.”

“Now come on, don’t be so hard on yourself. You just need to talk to him about it.”

“But…But what if he didn’t mean everything he was saying? What if that was just the poison talking and he doesn’t actually love me?”

Raven looked at Flynn for a moment, looking at him almost incredulously, before a soft smile tugged on his lips. He moved to get to his feet and walked over to Flynn, putting his hand on Flynn’s shoulder.

“Listen, kid. Both of you are absolutely dense. All of us know you two are mad for each other. The only people who don’t know are you and Yuri. You two are just far too stubborn ta actually admit it to each other. You just gotta suck it up and talk to him about it or else you’ll regret it for the rest of your life.”

“But what if—”

“Listen, if you spend your time focusing on what-ifs, you’ll never actually end up doing anything. Just talk to Yuri. And uh…maybe read up on the poison while yer waiting for him. You might find something interesting.”

Raven dropped the book he was reading into Flynn’s hand, a bookmark sticking out of middle, before he walked off somewhere. Flynn stared in mild disbelief. Sometimes Raven was actually capable of giving good advice…when it wasn’t about picking up girls.

Flynn sighed and decided to take a break from cutting wood. His brain was too cluttered to work for the moment. He took a seat in the shade, opening the book Raven handed him. He looked at the page that had been marked. Sure enough, the pages detailed the love poison, its effects on the body’s nervous system and the like.

However, a certain paragraph caught his eye. He bit his lip as he read about specific symptoms of the poison. Specifically, how it affected victims’ emotions and memory. Oh? He closed the book with a loud snap and covered his face with his hands.

Now he definitely needed to talk to Yuri.

However, their discussion would have to wait yet another day. Flynn could not find any moment where Yuri was alone. When he wasn’t being examined by the apothecary, members of Brave Vesperia would be having their own conversations with Yuri. It almost seemed like Yuri was trying to make it harder for Flynn to talk to him.

Yuri was most definitely avoiding him. He didn’t know why, and it hurt a lot. Flynn was just as new to these feelings as Yuri. If Yuri was just going to reject him, he wanted Yuri to get it over with. He wanted honesty, without some poison affecting Yuri’s mind.

Yuri was feeling better the next day and seemed well enough to walk and travel with the group just as before. They were back up in their airship, letting Ba’ul carry them off to their next destination. Everyone went about their business as usual, just finding places to hang out on the airship. Yuri normally would be hanging out with the group, but Flynn watched as Yuri went below decks.

Flynn waited a moment before following Yuri. He made his way to his and Yuri’s room and took a deep breath before opening the door. He found Yuri laying in bed, his hands covering his face. For a moment, he feared that Yuri was falling asleep, or that he was still sick, but he heard Yuri mumbling something to himself. At least he was awake.

“Yuri?” Flynn called over to him, his voice startling the man into a sitting position, only to whack his head on the top bunk bed.

“Ow fuck! Uh…Huh? Flynn? What do you want?” Yuri groaned, rubbing his sore head. At least there wasn’t a mark.

“Are you okay?”

“Yeah…yeah, I’m fine. I literally nearly died the other day. I’ve felt worse.”

“Um…that’s…that’s what I wanted to talk to you about.”

“I told you. I don’t remember what happened.”

“That’s funny. Because memory loss isn’t one of the symptoms of the poison. Read it in one of the apothecary’s books.”

“Oh…”

Yuri looked away from Flynn, shadows obscuring whatever expression he was making. However, Flynn could see the way Yuri’s shoulders tensed and how his fingers kneaded at the blankets on the bed. He moved like he was going to say something, but he couldn’t seem to say what he was thinking. That was a first.

“Yuri, please, can we talk?” Flynn’s voice was pleading.

“Ugh…yeah…yeah. It’s inevitable.”

He moved on the bed to make room for Flynn to sit. Flynn was thankful he hadn’t put his armor on that day. It would have made their uncomfortable positioning on the small bunk bed so much worse. They were nearly touching each other, especially with them both being rather tall. Flynn had to slouch to fit properly, while Yuri had to cross his long legs to make suitable space for Flynn to fit.

They were quiet for a while, neither one really wanting to speak first. Why did they both have to be so stubborn? Eventually, Yuri was the first to break the silence. Another first.

“Where do you wanna start?”

“Why did you pretend you lost your memory?”

“I…I was embarrassed, and I frankly didn’t want to have a confrontation.”

“You? Avoid confrontation?” Flynn let out a short laugh.

“Shut up! Anyway, you figured me out. Which clearly made things worse.”

“So, you remember everything.”

“Yes. Every moment that I was awake for, I remember. The way you looked when I was sprayed, crying a bunch, the way you were holding my hand nearly the entire time, my meltdown at the garrison…my confession to you. Everything. I figured if you thought I forgot you’d let it go.”

“You’ve known me for how long?” Flynn rolled his eyes. “That’s ridiculous.”

“It’s not ridiculous. Feelings are hard! I’m not good at feelings!”

“I know. I just…” Flynn trailed off looking at Yuri in such a state.

Yuri seemed more antsy as he spoke. He always had a restless energy about him when he was around Flynn. He was defensive and quick to a sharp remark, yet Flynn could find multiple ways to get under Yuri’s skin. However, Yuri seemed a bit different. That restlessness was nervousness now. There was a hesitancy Yuri never showed the rest of his friends. A hesitancy only Flynn had ever seen. 1

His eyes were downcast, as his hands tightened around the blankets. Yuri’s teeth dug into his lower lip slightly, if only to hide the slight wobble of emotion that threatened to betray Yuri’s typical coolness. It wasn’t an expression Flynn saw all that often. He honestly couldn’t remember when he’d last seen Yuri so…vulnerable. Sure, he was an emotional mess a few days before, but Yuri couldn’t control that. Now Yuri showed genuine fear, as he braced himself for rejection.

“Flynn! Say something!” Yuri’s voice told him that he must have been staring.

“Sorry I was just…you never look like this…”

“You were staring at me while I was crying too. Do you just get off on my suffering or something—”

“Shut up a moment.” Flynn cut him off.

“No! I want answers!” Yuri’s old stubbornness was back in his voice.

“What’s the last thing you remember? Before you fell unconscious.”

“Um…I told you goodbye? Why?”

“So, you actually don’t remember what I told you then.”

“What did you tell me?”

“I love you too.”

And Yuri fell dead silent. He blinked a couple times in disbelief. If the moment weren’t so serious, Flynn would have found the expression cute. Something about breaking Yuri’s seemingly unbreakable demeanor only drew Flynn to Yuri more. It was why he stared at the emotional Yuri so much. It was a side he never got to see unless they were alone, like this moment.

“You…” Was what Yuri managed to croak out.

“Yes. And um…I…kind of…kissed you.”

“What?”

“I thought you had died, and I was really emotional because, again, I thought you had died! I understand if you’re upset. That was wrong of me. I know.” Flynn bowed his head, feeling ashamed.

“Do it again.”

Flynn sat in a stunned silence. Did he hear that right?

“What?”

“What?” Yuri tried to play dumb, but Flynn knew better.

“What did you say?”

“I’m not repeating myself.”

“Then I’m not doing it.”

“You’re such a jerk! You know what I said.”

“I’m just making sure I heard you correctly.” Flynn smirked, his worries from before now dissipating.

Yuri pouted softly, making Flynn’s heart pound that much harder. It was funny seeing Yuri so flustered. He liked this side of Yuri a lot. Flynn kept his shit-eating grin as he teased Yuri.

And then he found hands on his face, and teeth crashing together. Flynn had to grab onto Yuri’s shoulders to brace himself, so they didn’t keel off the bed. They kissed for a while, Flynn trying to subdue the frustration radiating off Yuri. Eventually he was able to slow Yuri down, and they pulled apart, breathless.

Flynn reached up and gently poked his lips which felt swollen. Yuri’s lips didn’t look much better. Apparently crashing your face against someone else’s wasn’t a great for your lips. Flynn watched Yuri let go of him and flop back on the bed.

“Where did you learn how to kiss? Have you actually kissed anyone before?” Flynn asked as Yuri turned bright red. “Really? You haven’t kissed anyone?”

“Sh-Shut up.”

“What about those girls in the lower quarter you were dating?”

“I’ve kissed people! But nothing like that…”

“So, all those stories of you making out with girls?”

“I was lying…”

“I’m sorry. But are you seriously that inexperienced with kissing?”

“Like you’re any better?”

He…He had a point. Flynn moved so that their faces were only mere inches apart. The blush that spread across Yuri’s cheeks made him smile. They didn’t have much space to work with, but Flynn gently pulled Yuri into another kiss. This one wasn’t so aggressive. Their lips moved slowly, trying to find a rhythm that suited them both. Eventually they relaxed, the kiss feeling more natural, yet still so very awkward.

Flynn took pleasure in the awkwardness of the moment. They were on equal footing. Plus, words never really suited their style. This made sense. A gesture. A touch. They were men of action, not speech. Kissing proved to be an easier way to communicate all their feelings. Flynn could feel every tense muscle in Yuri’s body, every unsure movement, each time Yuri’s hands grabbed at him. He was sure Yuri could feel his own nervousness too, because occasionally Yuri would pull back to look up at Flynn, silently checking in.

When they finally pulled apart, Yuri pulled Flynn to lay next to him on the cramped bunk. Their legs tangled, arms weaving around each other. Flynn found his hands in Yuri’s hair, dislodging tangles and knots where he could.

“You kiss nice…” Yuri mumbled, his voice a low rumble against Flynn’s ears. “Are we dating?”

“Do you want to?” Flynn looked up at Yuri, still playing with his hair.

“I’d like to try…”

“Then that’s what we’ll do…”

And Flynn closed his eyes, feeling exhausted from everything that had happened the past few days. Yuri yawned and pressed himself closer to Flynn, his head nuzzling into his shoulder.

“We should…head back to the others,” Flynn mumbled.

“Eh. No. I need to nap…so do you. You’re exhausted.”

“Says the man who slept for three days.

“Shut up and nap with me.”

Flynn was already drifting off too much to argue.


End file.
